Automatic cigarette weight-adjusting device for cigarette-making machines



March 29, 1960 s. INNOCENTI 2,930,381

AUTOMATIC CIGARETTE WEIGHT-ADJUSTING DEVICE FOR CIGARETTE-MAKING MACHINES Filed July 19, 1956 5 Sheets-Sheet 1 2 M, sa

I N VEN TOR Sa /0M; /A )VOCA/7'/ March 29, 1960 s. INNOCENTI 2,930,381

AUTOMATIC CIGARETTE WEIGHT-ADJUSTING DEVICE FOR CIGARETTE-MAKING MACHINES Filed July 19, 1956 5 Sheets-Sheet 2 26 lo q r-H iii 15- m M {16 a r A 36 1 NVEN TOR E/flO/Y'ANOCE'A/T/ RNEY March 29, 1960 s INNOCENTI 2,930,381

AUTOMATIC CIGARETTE WEIGHT-ADJUSTING DEVICE FOR CIGARETTE-MAKING MACHINES 5 Sheets-Sheet 3 Filed July 19, 1956 if 1 J) 9 INVENTOR $c/fl/04/E/VA/0cEA/r/ March 29, 1960 s. INNOCENTI 2,930,381

AUTOMATIC CIGARETTE WEIGHT-ADJUSTING DEVICE FOR CIGARETTE-MAKING MACHINES Filed July 19. 1956 5 Sheets-Sheet 4 III-11] 2o 49 25o INVENTOR Ja/flm/E //V\/0CEA/77 TT RNEY March 29, 1960 s. INNOCENTI AUTOMATIC CIGARETTE WEIGHT-ADJUSTING DEVICE FOR CIGARETTE-MAKING MACHINES 5 Sheets-Sheet 5 Filed July 19, 1956 V INVENTOR b/p/o/ve //\/A/0 (EA/77 RNEY United States Patent AUTOMATIC CIGARETTE WEIGHT-ADJUSTING DEVICE FGR CIGARETTE-MAKING MACHINES Scipione llnnocenti, Bologna, Italy, assignor to S.A.S.I.B.-

S.p.A. Scipione lnnocenti-Bologna, Bologna, Italy, an Italian joint=stock company This invention has for its object a device for automatically adjusting the weight of the cigarettes in continuous V cigarette-making machines, in which a cigarette rod is formed by feeding the shredded tobacco in the form of a shower of substantial width and reduced thickness on a continuous cigarette paper, before the formation of a cigarette rod. In practice, this variation of the Width of the tobacco shower is obtained by intercepting and deflecting a variable part of the said tobacco shower by means of a deflecting member, and preferably a troughshaped deflector, which is adapted to intercept and collect a marginal portion of the tobacco shower, such collected portion being preferably led back into the feed cycle of the cigarette-making machine.

The control of the adjusting device according to the invention takes place automatically and is effected by any device which is sensible to the variation of the cigarette weight, with respect to a predetermined weight, or also to the variation of characteristic feature whatsoever of the cigarettes, as for example the amount of filling.

The device according to the invention is remarkably more sensible and more precise than the adjusting devices heretofore known and, which control the tobacco carding speed and may be adjusted usually only by hand. Preferably the device according to the invention will be employed in combination with such another manual regulator which will have for its function to establish at each time the average weight'of the cigarettes, which corresponds to their size and type of the tobacco composing same, while the automatic adjusting device according to the invention will eliminate, during its working, the small differences between the effective weight and the predetermined weight, by means of immediate controls, without modifying the condition of the carding device.

The above and other features of the invention will be apparent from the following specification of a preferred embodiment, which is shown, by way of non-limiting example in the annexed drawings, in which:

Figures 1 and 2 are front and side views in elevation respectively of a cigarette-making machine provided with the adjusting device according to the invention.

Figure 3 is a vertical cross-section through the parts of the cigarette-making machine, in which a tobacco shower is formed and falls on a continuous cigarette paper.

Figures 4 and 5 show in vertical section and in plan view respectively, with parts in section, the deflector of part of the tobacco shower.

Figure 6 is a view in elevation of the controlling device of the deflector of part of the tobacco.

Figure 7 is a section on line VlIViI of Figure 5.

Figure 8 shows an electric wiring diagram of the adjusting device. 7

Figures 9 and 10 are partial views of the control weigher, said views being made in correspondence to the base member and graduated scale of the weigher, and V Figure 11 is a section on line XIXI of Figure 10.

With particular reference to Figures 1, 2, 3 and 4 of the drawings, 6 indicates the shredded tobacco-filled feed I, 2,930,381" Patented Mar. 29, 1960 of acon'tinuous cigarette-making machine feeding the shredded tobacco to a conventional cardingdevice 7' which delivers same to a feed belt 4- running between roller pairs, one of which only, viz. the front roller 5 is shown in Figures 3 and 4 of the drawings. Above this roller and tangentially to the belt 4 running thereon, a tobacco pick-up pin roller 8 is rotatably mounted so as to sweep the whole width of said belt 4 and to pick up the tobacco therefrom and carry same upwardly and then throw same beyond the outer end of the said belt 4 running on said roller 5, against a concave or otherwise outwardly inclined tobacco-deflecting wall which, together with an extension plate or baflie plate forms a kind of chute indicated in its whole by the numeral iii and at the bottom end of which the conventional channel-shaped member 2 is arranged in which the continuous cigarette paper P is fed at uniform speed by conventional means.

This paper P thus receives the tobacco falling down the chute 10-410 in the form of a shower 3 and is filled with a substantially uniform amount of tobacco. Then the filled paper P is led to the conventional closure members of the rod former of the cigarette-making machine where it forms the cigarette rod, which is then cut into standard lengths, or cigarettes. The above-described parts are conventional in continuous cigarette-making machines and thus do not form part of the invention.

According to the invention, in order to vary the filling of the cigarette paper P, along the path of the tobacco shower 3 a substantialy horizontal trough-shaped member 9 is introduced from one side of the chute 10 between the belt on roller 5 and the baflle plate 110. The trough 9 forms the extension of a tube 14 slidably mounted in a supporting member 15 fastened to the machine frame and provided with a rack-like part 18 meshing with a pinion 16 fastened to shaft 17. By this arrangement, by rotating the pinion 16, the tube is shifted axially in either direction, thus causing the trough 9 to project more or less into said hopper 10. An abutment member 19 fas tened to tube 14 and projecting in a longitudnial slot 20 of the fixed tube 15 limits the shifting of said slidable tube 14 and attached trough 9 in either direction.

By this arrangement, the trough intercepts and collects a marginal portion ofthe tobacco shower 3. A conveyor screw 21, rotatably mounted in bearings 22 in the slidable tube 14 and driven-by means of the pulley 23 from any suitable shaft of the cigarette-making machine and which extends beyond the trough 9, in the path of the tobacco shower, conveys the tobacco which has fallen into the trough 9 into the tube 14 which has a bottom opening quently of regulating the amount of fillingof the manufactured cigarettes. V

The trough 9 may be shifted in either dir'ection by a control device such as that shown in Figures 5, 6, .7.

On the shaft 17 of the pinion 16 which controls the shifting of the slidable tube 14 two ratchet wheels 29, V

30 which co-act with driving pawls 229, 23% respectively and one of which may be-driven in clock-wise direction and the other in anti-clockwise direction. 'The pawls 229, 230 are fulcrumcd on balance levers 31 fulcrumed at 32 and provided at one end with a cam roller 35 pressed by springs 34 against a cam 33 which is continuously rotated by sprocket 36 driven by any suitable control shaft, for example by a shaft of the cigarette-'- making machine (not shown). Each pawl 229, 230' co-acts with an electromagnet 329, 330 and is kept disengaged from the corresponding ratchet wheel 29, 30, by an extension 37 of the electromagnet armature or slidable core. In fact, when the electromagnet is de-energized, the part 37 of said armature, either by gravity or under the action of a spring 39, depresses the roller 38 constituting the end of an arm 129, 130 constituting a rearward extension of the pawl 229, 230 and lifts the corresponding pawl. When however one of the electromagnets 329, 330 is energized, it lifts its armature 37 and allows the corresponding pawl 229, 230, to fall and engage the respective ratchet wheels 29, 30, which, when the balance levers 31 are rocked by the cam 33 are rotated stepwise and drive the pinion 16 in either direction according to whether the clock-wise ratchet wheel 29 or the anti-clockwise ratchet wheel 30 is driven. The pinion 16 in its turn shifts the rack 18 and attached trough 9 in either direction for a more or less long section, according to the time during which either of the electromagnets 329 or 330 remains energized.

The trough 9 may also be adjusted manually by means of the handwheel 40 fastened to the shaft 17 of pinion 16.

It is apparent that the just-described adjusting device may be automatically controlled by any device which is sensible to the variations in weight of the cigarettes with respect to a predetermined weight.

This may be done, for example, by the use of an automatic weigher indicated in its entirety by the numeral 41 in Figure l and some of its control parts are shown in Figures 9, l and 11 which are taken from co-pending application Serial No. 569,849, filed March 6, 1956.

Said weigher 41, which periodically weighs a batch of cigarette samples, comprising a predetermined number of cigarettes picked up from the continuous production of the cigarette-making machine, is adjusted in such a manner that when the indicating hand 11 (Figures 10 and 11) is in the zero section, between the two heavy lines drawn on the central part of the dial 12, the weight of the cigarette samples lies within the allowed limits of a predetermined or standard weight. Beyond said central section, the weigher scale is subdivided into a number of side weight sections which correspond to weights in excess of or less than said standard weight.

In correspondence of these side sections switches 41, 42, 43, 44 are fitted which are normally open and may be closed by a pointer 13 hinged to said hand 11 and capable of swinging at an angle to the oscillation plane of said hand 11. Figure 11 shows how the pointer 13, when it is rocked in anti-clockwise direction, rocks by means of an extension 77 of the bellcrank lever 72 which, through its inclined nose 131, rocks the lever 130 which controls the switch 43. The operation is the same for the other switches 41, 42 and 44 (shown in the wiring diagram of Fig. 8) corresponding to other cigarette weight sections in excess of (the first two) or less than (the last one) the standard cigarette weight. In fact the closure of either of the switches 41 or 42 energizes the pawl-controlling electromagnet 329 while the closure of either of the switches 42 and 43 energizes the pawlcontrolling electromagnet 330 (shown in Figures 6 and 7) as follows:

With particular reference to the wiring diagram shown in Figure 8, the switch 41 by its closure, when the circuit is not interrupted at the switch 45, closes the electric circuit of a relay 141 whose armature 241, by being attracted, closes the switch 429 which energizes the electromagnet 329. The same maybe said of the switch 42 which when the circuit is not interrupted at 46, by its closure energizes the relay 242 which, by attracting its armature 244, closes the switch 529 which is in parallel with the switch 429.

On the other hand the closure of the switch 43 (when the circuit is not interrupted at 45) energizes the relay 143 and through the armature 243 promotes the closure 4 a of the switch 430 and the energization of the electromagnet 330. The same may be said of the switch 44, which, when the circuit is not interrupted at 46, energizes the relay 144 whose armature 244, by being attracted, closes the switch 53 and energizes the electromagnet 330.

To sum up, the circuits of both outer relays 241 and 244 are branched on a common switch 46 and those of the inner relays are branched on a common switch 45. These switches are controlled in their turn by a earn 146 or 145 which is controlled by the scale pointer 13 to keep the circuits of these switches closed for a time which is proportional to the angle of swinging of the pointer with respect to the zero position, thus determining the time of shifting of the trough 9.

From the foregoing it is apparent that the device just described permits of automatically adjusting the weight of the cigarettes by intercepting a part of the tobacco shower employed for filling the continuous cigarette paper.

It is understood that many other constructive forms of the device are possible without departing from the spirit of the invention. Thus the tobacco collected in the gutter might be discharged outside of the tobacco chute by any other conventional conveying means, such as a conveyor band, a blower or a suction device.

On the other hand, the means for driving the trough in either direction and for a length which is proportional to the difference from the standard cigarette weight and the detected weight may be different from those described and shown and may be controlled by any electromechanical means or manually.

I claim:

1. In a continuous cigarette making machine having a tobacco feed for feeding a shower of tobacco therefrom and a cigarette maker for converting tobacco showered by said feed into cigarettes, the combination comprising a slidably supported trough-like member adapted to project into the path of said tobacco shower and intercept a part of said tobacco, driven means for removing said intercepted portion of said shower from said trough-like member, means for shifting said trough-like member more or less into or out of said shower, so as to intercept and collect a fraction of said falling tobacco, a tubular member connected to said trough and opening into a tobacco discharge means and a screw conveyor mounted in said trough and tubular member and projecting into the path of the tobacco shower and driven in such a manner as to carry the tobacco intercepted by said trough away from said shower.

2. In a continuous cigarette making machine having a tobacco feed for feeding a shower of tobacco therefrom and a cigarette maker for converting tobacco showered by said feed into cigarettes, the combination comprising a slidably supported trough-like member adapted to project into the path of said tobacco shower and intercept a part of said tobacco, driven means for removing said intercepted portion of said shower from said troughlike member, means for shifting said trough-like member more or less into or out of said shower, so as to intercept and collect a fraction of said falling tobacco, a tubular member connected to said trough and opening into a tobacco discharge means, said tubular member and trough being slidably mounted and being provided with a racklike part, a pinion meshing with said rack-like part, means for rotating said pinion, and a screw conveyor mounted in said trough and tubular member and projecting into the path of the tobacco shower and driven in such a manner as to carry the tobacco intercepted by said trough away from said shower.

3. In a continuous cigarette making machine having a tobacco feed for feeding a shower of tobacco therefrom and a cigarette maker for converting tobacco showered by said feed into cigarettes, the combination comprising a slidably supported trough-like member adapted to project ass ss-r member connected to said trough and opening into a tobacco discharge means, said tubular member and trough being slidably mounted and being provided with a rackshaped part, a pinion meshing with said rack-shaped part, iiieans for rotating said pinion comprising a pair of drivratche tywheels operatively connected with said pinion and. having their teeth inclined in opposite directions; a pair ofdrivin'g pawls mounted for engagement each with its corresponding. ratchet wheel, means for engaging either oisaid pawls with its corresponding wheel while the other pawlis disengaged from its ratchet wheel and for keeping eitheiqpawlti'n ratchet-engaging position for a time which ispmponionn to the difier'ence'of weight of the cigarettes manufactured by said cigarette-making machine with respect to a predetermined standard weight, means for continuously rocking said pawls, and a screw conveyor mounted in said trough and tubular member and projectiht'o the path of the tobacco shower and driven in such a manner as to carry the tobacco intercepted by said trough away from said shower.. v i

In a continuous cigarette-making machine'in which a continuous cigarette paper band is filled with tobacco fall'- ing is shower form as said paper passes at a constant s edin achannel-shaped member, the arrangement comprls'ing a conveyor belt having a receiving and a delivery and and receiving shredded tobacco from a conventional tobacco-carding device annexed to the shredded tobacco box, a picker pin roller arranged at the delivery end of said conveyor belt, tangentially thereto, so as to pick up said tobacco from said belt and throw same tangentially above the said channel-shaped member in which the continuous cigarette paper passes; a concave bafiie member and an underlying bafiie plate deflecting said tobacco towards said channel-shaped member so as to cause said tobacco to fall therein in shower form, said tobacco shower having a, substantial width and a reduced thick.- ness and a slidable trougharranged between said tobacco bafile plate and the delivery end 'of said tobacco conveyor belt and adapted to pick up a marginalpart ofthe tobacco shower; and conveyor means in said trough for. carrying the tobacco intercepted by said trough, away and out of the cigarette paper-filling section of the cigarette-making machine.

5. A cigarette-making machine according to claim 4, which said trough is provided with atubular part and said last-named conveyor means is a screw conveyor projecting in part into the path of the tobacco shower 'and'with respect to whichsaid trough and tubular 'part are slidably mounted. 1

'6. A continuous cigarette-making machine according to claim 4, in which the slidable trough is provided with automatic control means comprising a rack-like part attached to said trough, a pinion engaging said rack, a pair of driving ratchet wheels operatively connected to "said pinion and formed so as to rotate in opposite directions, a pawl for each ratchet wheel, means for keeping either of said pawls out of engagement with the correspondingratchet wheel; a pawl-controlling electromagnet 'ior'e'ac'h of said pawls for engaging either of said pawls with the corresponding ratchet wheel upon energization; rotating cam means for rocking said pawls so as to cause th'e'pawl which is engaged with its said ratchet wheel to stepwise rotate'said wheeland a weigher for weighing at intervals samples of the cigarettes manufactured by said cigarette-making machine; means of said weigher for establishing electric contacts when the weight of the cigarette batches are less than 'or in excess of the predetermined standard weight; devices in an electric circuit for energizing either of the said pawl controlling electromagnets until the said trough has been shiftedso a's ovary the intercepted part of the tobacco shower until the filling of the. cigarette paper is that which produces cigarettes having a weight which is considered standardweight and means for de-energizing theenergized electromagnet. upon reaching such standard cigarette weight.

7. In a continuous cigarette-making machine comprising. a cigarette. paper-filling section in which a continuous cigarette paper bandis caused to pass continuously in a channehshaped member in which it is filled with tobacco falling thereon in shower form, the combination of a trough movable axially in either direction and projec'table into'the tobacco shower so as to intercept a; variable marginal portion. of the said tobacco shower, means for moving said trough axially, means in said trough for mbving the intercepted tobacco from the trough, weighing means'responsive' to the variations in the weights of the finished cigarettes from a selected standard weight,

a plurality of switches'on the said weighing means, each corresponding to a predetermined variation from the standard weight, an electricactuating device for said trough, an electric circuit through said switches and controlling. said trough moving means for actuating said means to move said trough according to the variation in weight of the cigarettes from the standard, and a timing switch device in said circuit for deactivating said trough moving means after a time which is proportional to the amount of variation of the weight of the cigarette batch from the said standard weight. 7

8. A continuous cigarette-making machine according to claim 7'in which the trough is provided with means for carrying away and recycling the tobacco intercepted thereby.

9; A continuous cigarette-making machine according to claim 7 and in which the said trough is provided with a tubular extension, said trough opening into a tobacco discharge means, a screw conveyor mounted insaid trough and tubular member which projects into the path of the tobacco shower, and means for driving said con veyor in such a direction as to carry away the intercepted tobacco.

' 10. In a continuous cigarette-makingmachine comprising a' cigarette'paper-filling section in which a continuous cigarette paper hand is caused to pass continuously in a channel-shaped member in which it is filled with for 'bacco falling thereon in shower form, the combination of atrough projecting in the tobacco shower and shift able axially in either direction for intercepting and deflec'ting a variable marginal portion of the said tobacco shower, aweighing balance responsive to the variations "in the weights o'f'the finished cigarettes from a selected standard weight, a plurality of switches on the said weighing balance, each corresponding to a predetermined "variation from the said standard weight, an electric actuating' device for the said trough, an electric circuit controlling the said actuating device and comprising said switches and a set of electric cam-operated contacts, the said electric actuating device being switched on by the said switches 'on the weighing scale upon deficiency or excess of the amount of scattering from the said standard weight detected by said scale and being switched off by one of the said electric cam-operated contacts of the said set, independently of the said scattering from the standard weight of the cigarettes, after ashifting of said trough proportional to the said amount of scattering detected by said. scale.

11. A. continuous cigarette-making machine according to claim 10 in which the trough is provided with means for carrying away and recycling the tobacco intercepted thereby.

-12. A continuous cigarette-making machine according to claim 10 and in which the said trough is provided with a tubular extension, said trough opening into a tobacco discharge 'means, ascrew conveyor mounted in. said trough and tubular member which projects into the path of the tobacco shower, and means for driving said conveyor in such a direction as to carry away the intercepted tobacco. a

13. A continuous cigarette-making-machine according to claim 10 in which the said trough is provided with a racklike part, a pinion meshing with said racklike part,

a means for rotating said pinion, and a screw conveyor mounted in said trough.

14. A continuous cigarette-making machine according to claim 10 in which the means for shifting said trough comprise a racklike part, a pinion meshing with said racklike part, a pair of driving ratchet wheels operatively connected with said pinion and having their teeth inclined in opposite directions, a pair of driving pawls mounted for engagement each with its corresponding ratchet wheel, means for engaging either of said'pawls with its corresponding wheel while the other pawl is disengaged from its ratchet wheel and for driving said ratchet wheel by an amount which is proportional to the difference of weight of the cigarettes manufactured by said cigarette-making machine with respect to a predetermined standard weight, means for continuously rocking said pawls, a screw conveyor mounted in said trough and tubular member, and means for driving said screw conveyor in such a direction as to carry said intercepted tobacco away from said shower.

15. In a continuous cigarette-making machine" in which a continuous cigarette paper band is filled with tobacco falling in shower form as said paper passes at a constant speed in a channel-shaped member, the combination comprising a conveyor belt having a receiving and a delivery end and receiving shredded tobacco from a conventional tobacco-carding device annexed to the shredded tobacco box, a picker pin roller arranged at the delivery end of said conyeror belt, tangentially thereto, so as to pick up said tobacco from said belt and throw same tangentially above the said channel-shaped member in which the continuous cigarette paper passes, a concave bafiie member and an underlying baffle plate deflecting said tobacco towards said channel-shaped member so as to cause said tobacco to fall therein in shower form, said tobacco shower having a substantial width and thickness and a slidable trough arranged between said tobacco bafile plate and the delivery end of said tobacco conveyor belt and adapted to pick up a marginal part of the tobacco shower, conveyor means in said trough for carrying the tobacco intercepted by said trough out of the cigarette paper filling section of the cigarette-making machine, and suction means connected to the end of said conveyor means in said trough for returning the intercepted tobacco back into said shredded tobacco-f ding box of the same cigarette-making machine.

16. In a continuous cigarette making machine having a tobacco feed for feeding a shower of tobacco therefrom and a cigarette maker for converting tobacco showered by said feed into cigarettes, a feed control for varying the amount of tobacco fed to obtain cigarettes of a predetermined weight comprising, a movable member laterally disposed substantially transverse to the path of travel of said shower and adapted to intercept a portion of said shower, positively driven means normally projecting into the path of said shower and operative directly upon said intercepted portion of said shower to remove said intercepted portion from said member, and means operative in response to variations in the weight of cigarettes made by said maker for moving said member rectilinearly in the path of said shower to divert more or less tobacco therefrom, according to deviations in weight of the cigarettes from a predetermined standard weight.

17. A continuous cigarette making machine according to claim 16 including means operatively associated with said positively driven shower removing means for recycling the removed tobacco to said feed. I

18. In a continuous cigarette making machine having a tobacco feed for feeding a shower of tobacco therefrom and a cigarette maker for converting tobacco show ered by said feed into cigarettes, a feed control for vary ing the amount of tobacco fed to obtain cigarettes of a predetermined weight comprising, a slidable channel shaped member laterally disposed substantially transverse to the path of travel of said shower and adapted to intercept a portion of said shower, positively driven means normally projecting into the path of said shower and operative directly upon said intercepted portion of said shower to remove said intercepted portion from said channel-shaped member, and means operative in response to variations in the weight of cigarettes made by said maker for moving said channel-shaped member rectilinearly in the path of said shower to divert more or less tobacco therefrom, according to deviations in weight ofthe cigarettes from a predetermined standard weight 19. In a continuous cigarette making machine having a tobacco feed for feeding a shower of tobacco therefrom and a cigarette maker for converting tobacco showered by said feed into cigarettes, a feed control for varying the amount of tobacco fed to obtain cigarettes of a predetermined weight comprising, a. slidable channelshaped member laterally disposed substantially transverse to the path of travel of said shower and adapted to intercept a portion of said shower, positively driven means normally projecting into the path of said shower and operative directly upon said intercepted portion of said shower to remove said intercepted portion from said channel-shaped member, means associated with said slidable channel-shaped member for moving said member rectilinearly and means operative in response to variations in the weight of cigarettes made by said maker for actuating said channel moving means to move said memher in the path of said shower to divert more or less tobacco therefrom, according to deviations in weight of the cigarettes from a predetermined standard weight.

20. In a continuous cigarette making machine having a tobacco feed for feeding a shower of tobacco therefrom and a cigarette maker for converting tobacco showered by said feed into cigarettes, a feed control for varying the amount of tobacco fed to obtain cigarettes of a predetermined weight comprising, a movable shower intercepting enclosure laterally disposed substantially transverse to the path of travel of said shower for intercepting a portion of said shower, positively driven means partially surrounded by said enclosure and movable therewith for removing from said enclosure the intercepted portion of said shower,rand means connected to said driven means and operative in response to variations in the weight of cigarettes made by said maker for varymarginal portion of said tobacco shower, means for moving said trough axially, means in said trough for removing the intercepted tobacco from the trough, weigh ing means responsive to the variations in the weights of the finished cigarettes from a selected standard weight,

means for actuating said trough moving means to move said trough in response to the variation in weight ofthe cigarettes from standard weight, and a timing device associated with said weight responsive means for deactivating said trough moving means after a time which is proportional to the amount of variation in the weight of the cigarettes from the said standard weight.

(References on following page) V References Cited in the file of this patent 2,745,411 2,753,871

UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,089,680 Sloan et a1. Mar. 10, 1914 331,333 2,707,630 Molins -i. May 3, 1955 361,998

10 Gilman May 15, 1956 Korber July 10, 1956 FOREIGN PATENTS Great Britain July 3, 1930 Great Britain Dec. 3, 1931 

